<strong>I have my moods, my ups and downs, my times of being morealive and less. Lately, I've felt somewhat dispirited,unspirited. OK, but also kind of stagnant where my visionary andcreative energies are concerned, which is to say with respect to thespirit.

Maybe it's me. Maybe it's just one of my moods.

But maybe I'm picking up on something about this moment in America. Maybe it's like THIS:

The central battle in America in our times is the battle of goodagainst evil, for evil has gained an unprecedented foothold in Americain recent times through what's happened through the right wing of theAmerican polity. That's the main event: a battle for thesoul of the country. That's not America's most essential businessmost of the time, but that is what's at center stage in the Americandrama since George W. Bush became president.

The arena of that battle used to be the Bush administration, and itsunprecedented lawlessness and lying. We got rid of that evilgang, got Obama, and discovered that even without Bush and Cheney theRepublican Party is a lying and amorally destructive force: allthe Republican Party wants to do is make Obama fail, whatever theinjury to the country, so they can get power back for themselves.

For better or for worse --and that's what now remains to be seen--Obama is our champion in that war. That is the battlefieldnow: whether the Republicans will be able to continue to gainadvantage by acting in the most irresponsible and unconstructive wayimaginable, in a completely dishonest and hypocritical way. Orwhether Obama will now be able to fight against them in a way that a)makes them pay for serving evil, and b) gets accomplished for Americathe incredibly many things we need to do to repair the damage latelydone the country, and create the foundation for the country to wiselyand competently choose its future and make itself into what it wants tobe.

The ugly process of getting health care reform passed was oneunsatisfying stage in the course of the battle between Obama and theRepublicans; but it DID look like it was achieving something inthe end.

Obama was disappointing as the general of our forces, largely making amess of his potential through the way he led --or didn't lead-- theprocess.

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THen the election in Massachusetts (which occurred in the context ofthat health care process mess) somehow threw everything up in the air--though in reality not all that much had changed-- and it led to atime when the forces of both good and evil scurried to adjust to thispolitical earthquake that Teddy Kennedy's seat had been one by aRepublican.

The Democrats eventually seemed to regroup. Obama hit a triple,if not a home run in the State of the Union Address and followed thatup by an astonishing encounter where Obama realled schooled the HouseRepublicans, leading finally to the issuing of the invitation totomorrow's televised meeting for Democrats and Republicans to talkabout health care, and "seek bi-partisanship" while the American people--who supposedly WANT bipartisanship-- watch on.

This was what? Two-plus weeks ago. At that point, therespective camps mostly retired from the field, making no major moveson the battlefield, knowing that this health-care meeting will be theshowdown to launch us into the next stage of the war.

We know that the result will not be any truly bipartisan, trulylegitimate working together in good faith to achieve results that aregood for the nation. The Republicans just don't have that inthem. And they know it, and we know it, and I think that we canassume Obama knows it.

And so we come into tomorrow's battle, in which the explicit text willbe that both sides are seeking appropriate cooperation between theparties for the good of the nation but in which <em>neither sidereally has any such aspirtations at this point.</em>

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The Republicans are not interested in bipartisanship because they arean expression of an evil force these days, and that force has no desirefor the good of the nation to be achieved. That's what makes itevil: it dislikes the good, and even if it had nothing to lose bymaking things good would choose not to do so.

And the Democrats don't aspire to real bi-partisanship out of thismeeting because they have to know that the Republicans are committed tomaking the Democrats FAIL, while have the government actually achievethings would make the Democrats look good. This Republican Partyis not willing to be a minority party, which means a political factionthat is content to work for the good in a way that accepts thelegitimacy of the power reality that it is the other side, for now,that is the dominant partner, that aspires to get power back while notmaking that the driving force in everything.

So Obama knows, me must assume, that his purpose in this meeting is forhim and the Democrats come out looking good in the eyes of the Americanpeople and the Republicans are exposed as the liars and hypocrites thatthey are.

Andy Schmookler, an award-winning author, political commentator, radio talk-show host, and teacher, was the Democratic nominee for Congress from Virginia's 6th District. His new book -- written to have an impact on the central political battle of our time -- is (more...)